This is one of my favorite lists to write! I am CONSTANTLY looking for new bands and albums to listen to. Each year the bounty varies but this year has been a particularly good haul! In the past at the end of June I write about my five favorite albums of the year so far, but this year has given us so much good music so far that I’m actually going to write about my ten favorites (so far). As always, this is simply my opinion, and it’s all rock or some rock subgenre, but if you’re reading this I assume you know me decently well enough to know my music preferences. This week’s post goes out to my fellow rockers and metal heads! Here’s my pick for my 10 favorite albums of 2018 (so far). Side note: This order could totally change whenever I do a list for my top ten favorites of the entire year!
10. “Here Come the Runts” – Awolnation
This album was without a doubt the biggest surprise for me! I was in a bit of a drought music wise and was looking for basically anything to listen to. New Music Friday came around and I saw this album was one of the new releases. He was really the only artist with new material that I recognized that week so I played it on Spotify… then I listened to it again later that day… then by the end of the week I was in the double digits. It’s surprisingly catchy and sounds nothing like their older stuff. Anyone who hears Awolnation immediately thinks of the song “Sail,” but this isn’t anything you’d expect. It’s just solid alternative rock with some REALLY catchy choruses! After I listened to this album I checked out their older stuff… still hated it but hey he’s got one album I like. That’s more than I can say about a lot of other artists/bands. Favorite Songs: Handyman, Table For One, Seven Sticks of Dynamite.
9. “All I See is War” – Sevendust
I feel like Sevendust releases an album every single year, do they ever sleep!? Do they have families!? Sevendust may release music at an absurd rate, but they aren’t always winners. This album though is definitely solid metal effort by them! The opening song Dirty is one of the best metal songs of the year so far and should see a lot of radio time in the future. Lajon Witherspoon has one of the most distinct and recognizable voices in metal and he puts himself to work on this album. It’s heavy but not overbearingly so, and the album definitely switches to its softer side occasionally. It’s a consistent album that has a nice variety to it that can please a widespread of metal fans. If that doesn’t make a good album then I don’t know what does! Favorites: Dirty, Risen, God Bites His Tongue.
8. “Gravity” – Bullet For My Valentine
This album literally came out today, but I’ve already listened to it twice! People that are diehard fans of the old metalcore Bullet are going to HATE this album. With this album Bullet seems to completely transitioning into being a hard rock band instead of being metalheads. I personally don’t mind this. The songs on this album are similar material the band has always been singing about, the guitar work is impressive in its own way and it’s nice to hear Matt Tuck actually sing for a majority of their songs. This album reminds me a lot of Trivium’s album “Silence in the Snow:” change in vocals but still the same feel the band has always had. True Bullet fans should get over themselves and give this new album a try because there’s a lot more to enjoy than they think! Favorites: Over It, Piece of Me, Breathe Underwater.
7. “Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life” – The Wombats
This album has one of the ugliest album covers I’ve seen in a VERY long time, but this list isn’t about album covers, it’s about the music and The Wombats are just as infectious as ever! The Wombats honestly haven’t released a single bad album yet since their creation, and that tradition holds up with “Beautiful People.” The band has always had a good sense of humor (I mean the cover looks like it has a turd on it), and the humor definitely shows in their clever wordplay for the song titles. Not only are the titles themselves memorable though, the choruses will be stuck in your head for days. This album is the perfect choice if you’re just looking for something relaxing and catchy that’ll bring a smile to your face. It blows my mind that this band isn’t bigger than they are. More people deserve to know about them! Favorites: Black Flamingo, Cheetah Tongue, Turn
6. “Ember” – Breaking Benjamin
Breaking Benjamin are one of the most consistent bands in rock. After returning from their hiatus they released one of their best albums to date in 2015 with “Dark Before Dawn,” and the band continues their successful return with “Ember.” Though the band is still as sad about life as ever, they definitely up’d their heaviness. There are some classic sounding Breaking Benjamin songs like “Red Cold River” and “Feed the Wolf,” and a lot of memorable choruses. Breaking Benjamin has always had a track record of making their songs sound similar to each other but each having one distinct factor about it making it unique. Though this album isn’t the absolute knockout that “Dark Before Dawn” was, “Ember” is an excellent album! Breaking Benjamin still hasn’t made a bad album yet! Favorites: “Red Cold River,” “Blood,” “Feed the Wolf.”
5. “When Legends Rise” – Godsmack
What a return to form for Godsmack! Their last album “1000hp” had its moments of greatness, but ultimately it was just an average effort for the band. Four years later and the band has returned with one of the best albums of the year! Although diehard Godsmack fans will turn their nose to this album for being too different from their other records, I commend the band for trying something new! “Bulletproof” and “When Legends Rise” are two of the best rock songs to come out this year and I’ll fight anyone that says otherwise. The rest of the album spans from good to great too with songs like “Take it to the Edge” and “Under Your Scars” being major standouts. Sully Erna could sing the phone book and I’d still enjoy it. Godsmack may have changed their new sound, but this new sound is something I think a broader range of people can enjoy which is good for rock music in general. Favorites: “Bulletproof,” “When Legends Rise,” “Under Your Scars.”
4. “ATTENTION ATTENTION” – Shinedown
The story goes that when the band was meeting fans, one asked them if they could make their next album “heavier” because their last album “Threat to Survival” definitely wasn’t. When I first saw the album cover for “Attention Attention” I was definitely skeptical; it looks like it was drawn up in 5 minutes. Then I heard the first single “Devil” and was immediately hyped for the new album. That song alone was better than anything on their last album. Not that “Threat to Survival” was bad, but “Devil” sounded like it was straight out of the album “Sound of Madness.” The rest of the album though sounds completely unlike anything the band has written before, it almost sounds like a punk album tackling the issues the world faces these days. Shinedown definitely kept their promise of delivering a heavier album, just not in the way that fans probably expected! Also “Brilliant” is one of the best closing songs on any of the albums here. Favorites: “Devil,” “Brilliant,” “Kill Your Conscience.”
3. “Pray For The Wicked” – Panic! At the Disco
Panic’s last album “Death of a Bachelor” was my favorite album of 2016 and one of my absolute all time favorites, so there were high expectations when Panic announced “Pray for the Wicked.” Did the follow up manage to surpass “Death of a Bachelor?” In a word, no but it’s still one of my favorite albums of the year so far. Almost every song is a bop so catchy you’ll want to dance while you listen. The band’s emo days are long gone and I’m entirely OK with that. These days the band is all about partying and having a good time, and that shines through on this album. You can’t help but smile when the chorus hits for these songs. While not the masterpiece that “Death of a Bachelor” was, “Pray for the Wicked” is an epic blend of pop and rock people will be listening to for a long time. Favorites: “Pray for the Wicked,” “Roarin’ 20’s,” “High Hopes.”
2. “Prequelle” – Ghost
Ghost has taken the rock and metal world by storm. They’ve risen in popularity at an alarming rate due to their songwriting and their memorable live shows. Having only recently started listening to Ghost, “Prequelle” is definitely my favorite album of theirs. As their name suggests, their songs are haunting and cover some dreadful material like death and everyone’s pal Satan. That being said, the band has always been surprisingly catchy and groovy and this album definitely has the catchiest tracks yet. “Dance Macabre” is (in my opinion) the best song the band has ever written. It’s impossible to dislike. My friend who is a life long pop fan even admits this song is great. This album is full of surprises; people have described some of the songs having a disco feel, and then just when you think you’ve heard it all “Miasma” has a killer saxophone solo in its finale! The album is catchy, full of surprises, and incredibly memorable but it’s not my favorite album of the year so far… there’s one more I like just a LITTLE more. Favorites: “Dance Macabre,” “Pro Memoria,” “See the Light.”
1. “Black Labyrinth” – Jonathan Davis
All the top five albums (for the most part) don’t have a bad song on them. This album doesn’t have a single bad song on it, but what sets it apart from the rest is the fact that this album is LONG. Thirteen songs without a single dud is hard to come by these days. Shinedown has the same number of songs on “Attention Attention” but the song quality just isn’t the same. Jonathan Davis’s solo debut hosts a myriad of different sounds and shows off his masterful vocals. There may not be any beat boxing like he does in Korn, but it still shows just how talented of a singer he really is. There are fast songs, slow songs, songs with cool tribal sections, it has the catchiness of all the other albums, the surprises of Ghost’s album, and some truly solid vocal work (I won’t say he’s better than Brendon Urie but he’s good). For all of these reasons, “Black Labyrinth” is my favorite album of the year… so far. Favorites: “What It Is,” “Underneath My Skin,” “The Secret.”
I’m sure there are albums I’ve completely missed, but what are some of your favorites? I’m always looking for new material and would love to know!
The Magical World of Dids 